Adjustable rail fastener for concrete ties



Sept l5, ?0 F. w. HOLSTEIN 3528,61@

ADJUSTABLE RAIL FASTENER FOR CONCRETE TIES www n I I l M| INVENTOR.

Sept. 15, 1970 F. w. HOLSTEIN 3,528,610

ADJUSTABLE RAIL FASTENER FOR CONCRETE TIES 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Dec. ll, 1968 @www INVENTOR. FefafR/c/f M/.f/orf/A/ m,mmaaam AZ'TRIVEYS United States Patent Glce 3,528,610 Patented Sept. 15, 1970 U.S. Cl. 23S-346 5 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE A gage plate has an inclined flat body for resting on a rail base ange disposed on a concrete tie provided with a bolt anchored in the tie. The plate has a downturned outer end for pressing against the edge of the flange. A spring clip, provided with a central opening for receiving the bolt, has an inner end engaging the top of the gage plate body and has an outer end to seat upon the tie so that when the bolt is tightened the gage plate will be held against the tie. The top of the gage plate body is provided with notches spaced lengthwise of it for selectively receiving the inner end of the clip to hold the gage plate different distances from the outer end of the clip.

Concrete railroad ties are frequently used in place of wooden ties. Unlike wooden ties, rail fasteners cannot be secured to concrete ties in just any location but must be placed where the fastener bolts are that are anchored in the concrete. Sometimes the bolts are screwed into threaded sockets in the tie and at other times the bolts are embedded in the tie and extend above it, but in either case their location is determined when the tie is made and cannot be changed. An objection to concrete ties is that they have a longitudinal tolerance of plus or minus 1/8 inch. Since the rail base has a lateral tolerance of plus or minus M6 inch and the rail fastener has a tolerance of plus or minus $56 inch and all these tolerances may be added together, it often is impossible to provide good track gage. Furthermore, with the usual rail fasteners used with concrete tics, it is not possible to change the gage on curves and in other locations when adjustments become necessary.

It is among the objects of this invention to provide a rail fastener for use with concrete ties which is adjustable, which allows any desired gage to be obtained and maintained, and which is simple in construction and operation.

The preferred embodiment of the invention is illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 is a plan view of a pair of rail fasteners in place;

FIG. 2 is a fragmentary side view;

FIG. 3 is a cross section taken on the line III-lll of FIG. 1; and

FIG. 4 is a side view of a modification.

Referring to FIGS. 1 to 3 of the drawings, a concrete tie 1 is provided near each end with a seat 2 for a rail 3. The seat usually is sunken slightly and is wider than the rail base. The rail may rest on a pad on the seat if desired. A short distance away from each side of the rail there is a circular opening 4 extending down into the tie. Bolts held in these openings may extend up out of them and have nuts threaded on their upper ends, or a headed bolt 5 can be screwed down into each opening. In either case the bolts are anchored in the tie and extend above it.

Outwardly beyond each bolt, that is, at the side of the bolt opposite the rail, the tie is provided with a transversely extending shoulder 7. The lower part of the outer end of a spring clip 8, formed from a rectangular plate, fits against the shoulder. The clip extends upwardly above the tie and then inwardly over the adjacent rail base ange. The central portion of the clip is provided with an opening 9, through which the adjoining bolt extends. The opening is longer than it is wide to provide for variations in the distance between the shoulder and the center line of the bolt. The upper portion of the spring clip is bowed upwardly lengthwise so that when the bolt is screwed down into the tie the clip will press upwardly tightly against the bolt head.

It is a feature of this invention that the inner end of the spring clip does not engage the top of the rail base directly. Instead, it engages the top of the inclined at body 12 of a gage plate resting on the rail base ange. The outer end of the plate is turned down to form a lip 13 that engages the edge of the ange. The top of the gage plate is provided with notches 14 spaced lengthwise of it for selectively receiving the inner end of the clip in order to hold the gage plate different distances from the outer end of the clip. Preferably, the notches are arranged in two rows disposed along the longitudinal edges of the gage plate so that the edges of the plate appear to be serrated. In order for the inner end of the clip to project down into an underlying pair of notches, the inner corners of the clip are bent down slightly so that they will fit in the notches. The notches are tapered in width and depth from their inner ends to their outer ends, and the downturned corners of the clip substantially conform to this taper and therefore it well in the notches.

OPERATION The rail resting on the seat 2 of the concrete tie is gaged (positioned correctly lengthwise of the tie relative to the other rail) and then a gage plate is placed on each rail base ange, with the lip 13 of the plate against the edge of the ange. Following this, the spring clips 8 are put in position with their outer ends against the tie shoulders 7 and their inner ends resting on the gage plates. The inner corners of each clip lit in a pair of plate notches 14. 'Ihe bolts S then are inserted through the clip openings 9 and screwed into the threaded openings 4 in the tie. The last thing to be done is to tighten the bolts so that they will tend to flatten the spring clips and thereby press their inner ends down tightly on the gage plates. Flattening of the clips also will tend to move the gage plates toward each other, with the result that the lips of the plates will be pressed tightly against the opposite edges of the rail base. Consequently, the rail cannot move laterally and change the gage. It is held in place by the gage plates, which in turn are held by the spring clips. Longitudinal movement of the rail is prevented by the downward force on it applied by the spring clips through the gage plates.

If it becomes necessary to change the track gage, all that has to be done is to loosen the bolts enough to permit the gage plates to be moved lengthwise of the tie with the rail as it is shifted sideways the necessary distance. Then the clips are again pressed down into the underlying plate notches, which will be different notches than those the clips fitted in before.

Sometimes it is desirable to insulate the gage plates and clips from the rail. This can be done very easily with this invention, as shown in FIG. 4, by simply placing a strip 16 of insulating material, such as rubber, between the bottom of the rail 17 and the tie 18, with the ends of the strip projecting from the opposite sides of the rail. A pad 19, separated into two parts, is inserted between the rail and tie at both sides of the strip. The end portions of the insulating strip then are lifted up beside the opposite edges of the rail base and folded inwardly toward each other onto the tops of the base flanges, after which the gage plates 20 are placed on top of these end portions. When the gage plates then are clamped in place by the spring clips 21, the ends of the insulating strip are clamped tightly between the plates and the rail base and thereby are held securely in place.

One of the important advantages of this invention is that it renders manufacturing tolerances for the tie, rail and fasteners uncritical, because differences in dimensions can be compensated for by the adjustments made possible by the rail fasteners disclosed herein. Also, the same fastener can be used with rail bases of several different widths and thicknesses, thereby eliminating the necessity of having a different size or shape fastener for every different size or shape rail base.

I claim:

1. An adjustable rail fastener for use with a concrete tie having a rail seat beside a vertical bolt anchored in the tie in xed position, said fastener comprising a rigid gage plate having an inclined at body adapted to rest on a rail base ange disposed on said seat adjacent the bolt, said plate having a downturned outer end for pressing against the edge of the ange, and a spring clip provided with a central opening adapted to receive said bolt, the clip having an inner end engaging the top of said gage plate body and having an outer end formed to seat in xed position upon the tie away from said plate, whereby when the bolt is tightened the clip will be pressed against the gage plate and the tie to hold the rail against movement toward the bolt, and the top of said gage plate body being provided with notches spaced lengthwise thereof for selectively receiving the inner end of the clip to hold the gage plate different distances from the outer end of the clip so that the rail can be adjusted lengthwise of the tie.

2. An adjustable rail fastener according to claim 1, in which said notches are arranged in two rows, one row being disposed along each longitudinal edge of the gage plate, and the corners of the clip at its inner end are downturned and lit in the underlying notches.

3. The combination with a concrete tie having a rail seat between a pair of vertical bolts anchored in the tie in xed position, and a rail extending across the tie above said seat and spaced from the bolts, the rail being adjustable lengthwise of the tie between the bolts, of an adjustable rail fastener at each side of the rail, the fasteners comprising a pair of rigid gage plates having inclined flat bodies resting on the rail base flanges, the plates having downturned outer ends pressing against the edges of said flanges, and a pair of spring clips provided with central openings receiving said bolts, the clips having inner ends engaging the tops of said gage plate bodies and having outer ends seating in fixed positions upon the tie outwardly away from the bolts, whereby when the bolts are tightened the clips will be pressed against the gage plates and the tie to hold the rail against lateral movement, and the top of each gage plate body being provided with notches spaced lengthwise thereof for selectively receiving the inner ends of the clips to hold the gage plates different distances from the bolts so that the rail can be adjusted lengthwise of the tie.

4. An adjustable rail fastener according to claim 3, including a flexible strip of electrical insulation between the rail and tie and extending up from the tie and inwardly over the rail base anges beneath the gage plates, whereby the end portions of the strip are clamped between the gage plates and the rail base flanges.

5. An adjustable rail fastener according to claim 3, in which said notches are arranged in rows, one row extending along each longitudinal edge of each gage plate, and the corners of the clips at their inner ends are downturned and fit in the underlying notches.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,140,891 12/1938 Boyce 23S- 349 2,254,540 9/1941 Myer et al. 23S-304 3,282,506 11/1966 Holstein 238--349 ARTHUR L. LA POINT, Primary Examiner R. A. BERTSCH, Assistant Examiner U.S. C1. X.R. 

